Point-of-care testing (POCT) is defined as medical testing at or near the site of patient care, for example at the doctor's office. Point of Care Testing systems enable expedited performance of tests, for example blood tests, eliminating a need for sending samples to laboratory. Expedited test results may also allow for immediate clinical management decisions to be made.
It is desirable that such POCT systems be simple to use and low maintenance. To that end, some systems use fully self-contained disposable cartridges or strips. In fully-automated systems, no preliminary sample preparation is required and the cartridges eliminate the risk of contamination.
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2014/0033809 describes a disposable cartridge for preparing a sample fluid containing cells for analysis. The described cartridge contains several chambers connected via channels and frangible seals. The sample is introduced via capillaries into the chambers and mixed by pressurizing the chambers.
The presently disclosed embodiments include several innovative aspects that have the potential for simplifying the cartridge design, improving manufacturability, and/or enhancing reliability and cartridge functions.